Lamp.



No. 771,018. PATENTED snmzv, 1904, J. P. w. JOST.

LAMP.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 31, 1897.

N0 MODEL. I 2 SHEETS-SE32? 2.

WITNESSES: INVENTOR:

r I By his Afforneys. I fi fih/ -T5 or where a readily transportable andeconom- Patented September 27, 1904.

UNITED STATES PATENT ()EEICE.

JOHN FREDERICK IV. J OST, OF JERSEY CITY, NEIV JERSEY.

LAMP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 771,018, datedSeptember 27, 1904.

Application filed August 31, 1897.?

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN FREDERICK WV, J os'r, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing in Jersey City, in the county of Hudson and State ofNew Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Lamps,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to illuminating-lamps of the class in whichan'incandescing mantle or body is employed, and aims to provide anoil-burning lamp of this character.

Heretofore the commercial use of incandescent mantles has been confinedto gas-burners or to alcohol-burners where the expense has been of nomoment, thus precluding the use of such bodies where gas was notobtainable ical lamp was desired.

My invention provides an oil-lamp in which ordinary illuminating-oil orany other suitable oil can be used to incandesce a mantle and give alight corresponding to that of the ordinary VVelsbach burner. To thisend in carryi-ng out the preferred form of my invention I employ, inaddition to the oil-reservoir, wick-chamber, and tubes of an oil-lamp, agasifying or vaporizing device for the oil, a mixing-chamber forcombining the gasified oilwith air, and a burner for the mixed gas andair, over which burner the mantle is sustained in such manner that thecombustion of the mixture incandesces the mantle, and I provide certainother features of improvement in lamps and their burners and certainimprovements in the construction, arrangement, and operation of thelamp, all of which will be fully hereinafter set forth.

In the accompanying drawings, which show the preferred form of myinvention, Figure 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of my improved lamp.Fig. 2 is a vertical mid-section thereof on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1looking in the direction of the arrow. Fig. 3 is a similar view, theparts being shown partly in elevation and cut on the line 3 3 in Fig. 2and looking in the direction of the arrow, showing the lamp in theposition for lighting. Fig. 4

is a cross-section cut on the line i 4 in Fig. '1. Fig. 5 IS across-section cut on the line 5 5 1n Fig. .1. vFig.6 is a cross-sectioncut on the cut on the line 7 7 of Fig. 1.

Serial No. 650,090. (No model.)

line 6 6 in Fig. 1. Fig. 7 is a cross-section Fig. 8 is a perspectiveview of the lifting-ring, and Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the door.

Referring to the drawings, let A indicate the oil-reservoir, B theburner as a whole, G the chimney, D the mantle, E the wick-chamber, thewick, G the wick-clamp, H the wick-adjuster, I the outer wick-tube, Jthe inner wick -tube and'central draft-tube, K the doors, L thevaporizing or gasifying chamber, M the mixing-chamber, and N thegasburner, of my improved lamp. These parts may be of any suitable ordesired construction and arrangement, it being only essential to themain features of my invention that the oil fed from the wick should bevaporized or gasified by heat at or before leaving the latter, that thisgas should be sufliciently mixed with air to form a combustible mixtureat or upon receiving additional air from the gasburner, and that thecombustion of the gases at the latter shall generate suflicient heat toproperly incandesce the mantle.

In the preferred form of my invention 1 construct the burner B with atubular base 0, consisting of a neck a, screwing into the reservoir A,carrying a filling-tube b for supplying oil to the latter and having anoutturned flange c, on which is fixed the outer wick-tube I by itsflange (Z, and a cylindrical carrier 0 for the casing P of the burner.The casing P fits over the upper end of the carrier 6 and is separablycoupled thereto, as by a bayonetjoint f, and incloses the gasifying andmixing chambers and carries on its upper end the chimney C, of which itconstitutes, essentially, a lower extension. For holding the chimney thecasing is provided with a chimney-holder g, consisting of rods risingfrom its flanged outer end, which rods are connected at top by a bandlb, surrounding the chimney, and above this band may carry shade-holders2', below which the casing is shown' as having globecarriers j, theparts 5/, h, c', and being of usual construction.

The outer wick-tube I, the outer wall of the wick-chamber, is tapered orconical and is, as usual, fixed to the parts within the carrier 6. Itcarries the inner tube J concentrically,

which tube opens through the tube I into an annular air-chamberQ, formedwithin the carrier, the flange d of the wick-tube constitut-v ing thelower wall of this chamber and the flange it of the carrier constitutingthe upper wall thereof. Both of these flanges are perforated, and alarge hole Z, immediately below the open end of the tube J is providedthrough the flanges 0 and cl of the neck a and tube 1 for permittingsufficient ingress of air to the center draft throughtube J, whichlatter receives all its air from the chamber Q, the flow of air theretobeing moderated by a screen or foraminous partition m and graduated by adamper n, the handle of which extends outwardly to permit of readyadjustment of the center draft.

Within the wick-tube and extending beyond the upper end of the innertube J is a foraminous wall R, formed in aseparate tube of perforated orWoven material, open at its lower end and there receiving air throughthe center draft, closed at its upper end, as by a cap 9, and verticallyadjustable in the center draft-tube, being preferably frictionally heldtherein in such manner that it can be adjusted by a slight force, butwill not be accidentally displaced. ated or predetermined amount of airoutwardly to the vaporizing or gasifying chamber L immediately above thewick F and is designed to maintain along its surface a combustion of thelighter hydrocarbons in the gases produced from the oil sufficient tomaintain a temperature for the tube itself or for the adjacent partshigh enough to vaporize or gasify the oil in the wick. A brightincandescence of the tube R is generally sufficent for this purpose. Thetube or its airsupply should be such that it will not feed more air thanis necessary for the purpose of generating a gasifying heat. Surrounding.the wick is a second and preferably also a foraminous wall S, whichconstitutes the outer wall of the gasifying-chamber L and which risesfrom a point near the top of the wick to a suitable point, where it iscontinued by another wall, T, preferably also foramino'us, whichconstitutes the outer wall of the mixing-chamber. The wall S is shown asconsisting of wire'netting or cloth of relatively fine mesh and ofslightly greater diameter than the upper end of the wick-tube I, fromwhich it is guided by a ring 0*, having three or more fingers bearingagainst the outer wick-tube and supported by a perforated cone 8, fixedto the casing P. The ring 7' leaves a substantially annular inlettaround the wicktube into the chamber L near the wall S, through whichinlet air may flow from the casing to the chamber, this air beingdesigned to mix with the gases at the outer side of the chamber, but notbeing suflicient to form with the gases an ignitiblc mixture at thispoint during normal operation. Additional inflow This tube feeds agraduof air to the vaporizing or gasifying chamber occurs to a slightextent through the perforations in the wall S throughout the lengththereof; but as this flow is also insufficient to produce anignitingmixture normally there is no combustion in this chamber exceptthat around the wall R. The lower end of the wall S is shown asconsisting of a ring u, which rests loosely on the ring 1' and hasprojecting fingers c, by which the wall S can be lifted for conveniencein getting access to the wick, as for lighting the lamp. These fingersare slidingly engaged by vertical guide-rods w, carried by the casing P,and engage inclines w on the doors K, up which they ride as the doorsare turned to the open position. The doors for this purpose are made toslide around the casing axially about ninety degrees in moving from theclosed to the open position, in which movement they will raise the wallS, as shown in Fig. 3. The doors are shown as having peep-windows y,through which the operation of the burner can be seen. Wall S preferablyslides within the wall T, to facilitate which the latter is providedwith sliding strips a, which receive a top band 6 of the wall S.

The wall T is shown as cylindrical and of relatively coarse perforationsor mesh. It is supported from rods 0, carried by the ring r, and extendsupwardly from the wall S, forming the lower part of the mixing-chamberM. Above this wall is another wall, U, shown as conical and imperforate,which at its lower flaring ends surrounds without quite touching theupper part of the wall T and approaches near to the casing P, leaving anannular air-inlet (Z to the chamber M above the wall T and an annularair-passage a between its lower edge and the casing. The wall U carrieson its upper end the burner N, with which it communicates through acontracted throat f as shown. The burnerN is shown as anoutwardly-flaring wall 9, surmounted by a deflecting-plate it, betweenwhich and the wall the gaseous mixture escapes and beyond which itignites. As shown, the burner and the wall U are supported from the ring9* adjustably on the posts 0 by a mantle-guard 5, which consists of ametal cylinder fixed to the wall U and fitting loosely within the mantleD, but leaving an air-inlet between itself and the mantle, through whichsufficient air can pass to insure that all the gases within the mantleshall be consumed.

A mantle-holder y" is shown as carried on the upper part of the casingP.

The casing P, with the vaporizing or .gasifying chamber, mixing-chamber,and burner, may be sold as an attachment adapted to fit any lamp-burneror, together with the burner, as an attachment adapted to fit thereservoir of any lamp, or the vaporizing or gasifying and mixing chamberand burner above the latter can be sold as an attachment adapted ICO tofiton any oil-lamp burner. Any suitable connection between the outer andinner walls of the vaporizing or gasifying chamber permitting adjustmentof the one relatively to the other and suflicing to retain them inproper relation may be employed instead of utilizing the outer and innerwick-tubes for this purpose,and especially when the parts are sold asseparate attachments it will be advisable to provide some otherconnection, not only between these two walls, but between the walls Tand U also.

In operation there is a continual upflow of air through the casing andchimney graduated in extent and force by the perforations in the casingat by the perforated cone 8, and the perforated flange is of the carrier6, and flanges c and (Z of the neck a, and outer wick-tube I, and acontinual upflow of gas or vapor and air through the chambers L and M,generated by the flame or partR from the wick F. This upflow of airthrough the easing and chimney constitutes, essentially, a chimney-draftand can he graduated or regulated according to any well-known orsuitable method for this purpose. It is from this upflow that the air istaken for admixture with the gas in the chambers L and M and for theflame at the burner, this air being fed to the gas at successive pointsin such quantities and manner as to best accomplish the mixing withoutproducing combustion in the vaporizing or gasifying and mixing chambersin normal operation. This feed rises as an annular stream of air withinthe bottom of the wall S close to the wall and is added to in reducedquantities throughout the perforations of this wall and in a similarmanner, but in greater quantities, throughout the perforations of thewall T. Between the bottom of the wall T and the top of the wall S theremay be room for a slight annular feed around the latter wall, as shownat Z in Fig. 2. At the top of the wall T a relatively large annularair-feed is receivedthrough the openings cl, this feed havingconsiderable current force and volume by reason of the flaring edge ofthe wall U catching a large portion of the updraft and diverting it intothe chamber M. This infeed is mixed with the rising gas and air,

passes through the contracted neck f, and;

delivers the mixture at theburner N in a condition adapted for completecombustion. The mixing may be so adjusted that a greater or less supplyof air shall be accessible to the flame at the burner, or the admixtureof air may be adjusted to suit different conditions or adapt the burnerto different qualities of oil, one method of accomplishing this beingshown as an example, in which the wall U is adjustably supported fromthe rods 0 by nuts m, screwing on the latter, which suflice for raisingand lowering the wall U to increase or diminish the area of the inlet d.

Theonly central feed for the lamp is that through the center draft-tubeJ and gasifyingwall R, and this is preferably only suflicient tomaintain the.combustionnecessary to maintaining the heat requisite forgasifying the oil. This inlet feeds suflicient air through the wall tomaintain a thin film of blue or gasifying flame along the outer surfaceof the wall, which is the extent of the combustion at this point and,indeed, the only combustion in the tubes, the products of thiscombustion rising with the gases through the mixingchamber. Thiscombustion maintains the wall R at an incandescent heat of varyingdegree, according to the operation of the lamp, and is adjusted by thedamper on, which controls the center draft inflow, and also by changingthe elevation or length of the wall R.

To light the lamp, amatch is applied to the wick as for an ordinaryoil-lamp, and the wick burns with an ordinary flame until it is confinedin the annular gasifying-chamber between the walls R and S by loweringthe latter to the position shown in Fig. 2. Thereupon the flame becomesmore bluish and rapidly heats the wall R, the heat as itincreasesgasifying the oil more rapidly and finally producing an excess of gasover air at the wick, so that the flame leaves the wick and rises withinthe gasifying-chamber, seeking naturally the point of greatestair-supply, which is the upper part of the wall R, increasing the heatof the latter, and still further accelerating the gasification, whichaccelerationcontinues until the flame has risen, consequent upon theever-increasing excess of gas, through'the mixingchamber and burner towithin the mantle,

IOO

leaving only the small gasifyi'ngflame in the.

tube, the point of complete combustion of the gases being below theburner until the production of gas is in such proportion to theadmixture of air as to make an ignitible mixture only at the burner.Raising or lowering the wick increases or diminishes the oil-supply, andconsequently the extent of gas production. By this means the flame canbe raised to increase the incandescence of the mantle, or it can belowered until the combustion of gas is confined within themixing-chamber or even until itis within the vaporizing or gasifyingchamber, in which case the lamp will not appear to be lighted, but canat will be caused to illuminate by simply turning up the wick again. Toput the lamp out, the wick may be turned down until all flame isextinguished.

In principle my invention uses the gasifying or blue portion of anyordinary flame to gasify the oil and removes the white or illuminatingportion of the flame sufficiently from the blue portion to provide for asuitable admixture of'air to insure complete combustion of thehydrocarbons with a blue flame at the gas-burner by interposing themixing-chambers and providing throughout the transit of the gas from thegasifying-to the combustion flames a graduated and increasing supply ofair of such quantity and distribution that it can mix with the risinggases at successive points without causing an ignitible mixture untilthe bu rneriis. reached.

It will'lbe understood that my invention provides improvements\vhiclican be readily and advantageously availed of and that by myinvention the incandescent-mantle lamp can be employed for table,reading, and portable lamps where gas is not accessible or convenient orwhere its expense renders the use of oil advantageous.

It will be understood that the invention is not limited in itsapplication or uses to the particular details .of construction,arrangement, and combination set forth as constituting its preferredform, but that it can be employed according to such modifications andfor such uses as circumstances or the judgment of those skilled in theart may dictate without departing from the spirit of the invention.

' Important features incident to my improvements are the making of onewall of the gasifying-chamber with differential apertures from theopposite wall and the making of the Wall of a gasifying or mixingchamber, or either, with air-inlets of different capacity at differentpoints in its length and the controlling of the air-supply for thegasifying-chamber and for the mixing-chambers and causing a gasilicationby means of the heat transmitted by the Wall or other suitable conductorwhich is heated by the gasifying-flame instead of by direct heat of theflame at the Wick, as heretofore. In operation suitable gasifying issecured without there being any contact of. the flame with the wickafter the operation of the burner has started, so that in operation thewick is never consumed, and therefore does not require trimming. Thecontrol of the air-supply at the inner side of the wall of thegasifying-chamber, which is to be the flamewall thereof, (the wall R inthe construction shown,) either by air dampers or checks or bygraduating the perforations in this Wall relatively to those in theopposite Wall, enables the confining of the flame to the wall desiredfor the flame-wall and the reduction of this flame to the minimumnecessary for proper gasilication. Change of relative capacity of theair-inlets throughout the length of the mixing-wall of the vaporizing orgasifying and mixing chamber in the construction shown the wallscomposed of cylinders S and T and eoneUenables one to obtain the desiredcharacter of flame at the burner N and to .maintain the flame at thedesired distance from the gasifying-flame and from the wick. In myexperiments with the walls S and T, I find that increasing theair-inlets at the remoter points from the wick has importance insecuring the distance between the outer and inner flames in operationand that the making of the perforations in the outer wall of less areathan those in the inner wall of the vaporizing or gasifying chamber hasthe effect of throwing the flame to the inner wall, which wall it ismost convenient to use for the flame-wall of the chamber; I

The invention also meets the requirements for a Welsbach burner, thatthe gas shall have suificient forceinits up'flow'to burn properly withinthe mantle. \Tlie heat evolved at different points rwithi'n'; the casingand chimney, acontrol of. air-supply by the perforations or othergas-checks in the chimney and base, and the adjustment of the lower edgeof the cone Uare sutflcient in the construction shown to insure thatthere shall be-ar'suitable updraft in the lamp and that a properportionof this shall be caught by the cone and'conflned withinxthe narrowthroat f, thusaccelerating the speed of current of mixed gas and air tothe desiredpoint as it reaches the burner. The smaller the neck in theconethe larger should be the apertures in the wallit surmounts, and viceversa. v

'What l. claim is.:- i.

1. An oil-burner comprising a vaporizingchamb'er, means for introducingoil into said chamber, and means for maintaining avaporizing-flamewithin said .chamber and at a point remote from thepoint of introduction of oil into said chamber.

2. An oil-burner comprising a vaporizingchamber, means for introducingoil into said chamber, means for maintaining a vaporizingflame withinsaid chamber and at a point remote from the point of introduction ofsaid oil into said chamber, and means for admitting air between saidpoint of introduction and said flame.

3. In oillamps and the like, a wick-chamber, another chamber, and meansfor supporting combustion of a portion of the vapor arising from the endof the wick at a point beyond such end and within the last-mentionedchamber, said combustion serving to vaporize the oil at the end of thewick.

4. In oil-lamps and the like, awick-chamber, another chamber, means forsupporting combustion of a portion of the vapor arising from the.end ofthe wick at a point beyond such end and within the last-mentionedchamber, said combustion serving to vaporize the oil at the end of thewick, and means for controlling said combustion whereby the quantity andcharacter of the vapors formed are controlled.

5. In oil-lamps and the like, a wick-chamber, another chamber, means forvaporizing the oil at the end of the wick, and means within thelast-mentioned chamber for continuing said vaporization by thecombustion of a portion of said vapor at a point beyond the end of thewick.

6. An oil-burner comprising a vaporizingchamber, means for introducingoil into said chamber, and means for supporting combustion at a pointbeyond said oil and within said chamber of a portion of the Vaporarising from said oil, said combustion serving to vaporize the oil.

7. For oil lamps and burners, a casing, a door in said casing, awick-chamber, a tube fitting thereover, and a'connection between saidtube and said door whereby access to the wick-chamber is controlled bythe movement of the door.

8. The improved attachment for oil-lamps having wicks consisting of agasifying-chamher having outer foraminous walls for fitting over thewick, and a foraminous inner wall for fitting inside of the wick, theperforations in one wall exceeding in area the perforations in the otherwall whereby combustion at the wick is precluded, a mixing-chamber abovesaid walls and a burner above said mixingchamber.

9. For oil-lamps and the like, a gasifying and mixing device fittingover the wick of the oil-burner, said device having two foraminouswalls, the apertures through one wall being unequal to those through theother, said walls inclosing'between them an annular chamber, whereby thedraft through one wall of said chamber will be less than that throughthe other wall thereto, and the combustion Within said chamber is remotefrom the wick and confined to the upper part of one of said walls.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

JOHN FREDERICK l/V. J OST.

Witnesses:

GEORGE H. FRASER, THOMAS F. WALLACE.

